apotelesma
by yulbos
Summary: "It strikes him, not for the first time, as he pushes the front door open and the little bell above the door tinkles, just how strong the magic in this place is." or: just because they have magic, doesn't mean they know what they're doing with it [kuroo/tsukishima]
1. i'm born too late for these ghosts

**so i haven't posted any fic in literal months and now that i am it's for a new fando o. i've wanted to write fic for this fandom for a long time but never really had the motivation to until now. this is gonna be the slowest of burns, and mostly a collection of connected oneshots than one cohesive thing. this websites formatting sucks for this kinda thing but we're gonna try.**

* * *

Kei watches the crush of people pushing their way through the subway and has to take several deep breaths, fighting down the panic he can feel slowly uncoiling in his belly. Not for the first time, he wonders which particular bout of madness drove him to move to arguably the busiest city on Earth. Especially when he can't stand people. He shoulders past a group of teenagers, young enough that they should _definitely_ be in school at this time of day, and sneers when one of them yelps at him. One of them, a tall boy with bleached blonde hair, starts to cuss him out, but he makes a show of pulling his headphones over his ears as he steps onto the nearest escalator. He wraps one hand firmly around his bag strap, tucking it into his side as much as he can, and shoves the other into his jacket pocket where he curls his fingers tightly around his phone.

There's a lull as he reaches the small strip of shops that separate platforms from the station exits; most people are more interested in getting to wherever they're meant to be than hanging around a dingy subway station. Kei stops for a moment, buying a bottle of water from a nearby vending machine and using the time to reorient himself. He watches men in smart business suits use their briefcases as pseudo battering rams to climb the stairs leading up to the street above, and after a brief pause, follows suit. It's not exactly cool outside, being the height of summer means that the sun is firmly at home in the sky, but after the sweltering heat of the underground it almost feels like it. Enough to have him tugging the zip of his hoodie further up his chest, at any rate. He steps out of the way of a particularly cantankerous looking old man, hooks the bottle between two fingers, and sets off on his way.

The walk to the university is pleasant, almost. It's perhaps a little _too_ warm for Kei's liking, but given that July is bleeding into August and they're in the middle of a heatwave it's not overly surprising. He wipes at the thin sheen of sweat that's gathered on his forehead and then pushes his sleeves up to his elbows. The streets are quiet, even for a late Tuesday morning, and Kei takes his time.

He stops at the alley his favourite coffee shop resides in, checks his watch and quickly weighs his options. There's the better part of an hour before his first class, but if he goes he'll constantly be checking the time. He shakes his head, turns around and carries on walking. _After class_.

Fifteen minutes before class starts and he finds himself slouching against the wall opposite their lecture hall, long legs stretched out in front of him as far as comfortably possible. His fingers tap against his thighs in time to the quiet music he has playing. No one else has shown up yet, which isn't unusual. In the three months he's been in Tokyo, Kei has yet to be anything other than the first to arrive for _any_ of his classes. He checks his watch, small smirk falling into place when a familiar voice calls out to him from somewhere to his left.

"Good mornin', Tsukishima!" He rolls his head to see who it is, even though he already knows. They've got a routine down, now, and he won't be the one that ruins it. One of the pins on the noticeboard he's leaning against digs into the side of his head and he pushes away from the wall with a tiny huff.

Inouka Sou watches him straighten his clothes with a bright grin. It should be annoying, having someone watch him as intently as Inouka does, but Kei finds he doesn't really mind. Partly because he'd stayed up too late studying last night and is suffering the consequences this morning, and partly because he doesn't find Inouka as irritating as he maybe should.

"Morning." He resettles himself against the wall, careful to avoid any notices or stray pins out to get him, and bites back a yawn. He tugs at the cord of his headphones so they slide back down around his neck.

Inouka laughs, loud and cheery, as he makes himself comfortable a few feet away. His bag hits the floor with a dull thud, and he crouches down to rummage through it, notepad getting dumped unceremoniously onto the lino. "You're as talkative as ever."

Kei hums, uncapping his water bottle and taking a sip. The taste of watered down watermelon hits his tongue and he scowls, lifting the bottle up so he can frown at the label.

"You do the reading?" Inouka asks, apparently having found whatever it was he was looking for, although Kei can't see any noticeable difference. He tucks his notepad under his arm as he stands back up, and they both wince as his knees crack.

"Of course." Kei says as he replaces the cap and shoves the bottle deep into the depths of his bag. "Did you?"

They both already know the answer to this, and Inouka shrugs sheepishly, swinging his bag onto his back. "I tried?"

Kei hums again, and that would have been the end of the conversation anyway, but he's saved from having to make it awkward by the arrival of half their class turning up at once. Inouka is immediately drawn into conversation with two girls Kei only knows by sight.

Thankful to be left alone again, he pulls out his phone and checks his messages. One from Yachi, complaining about how hard her mother's working her, two from his own mother reminding him to eat "proper food, none of those takeaway meals", and a few from Tadashi inquiring about his general wellbeing. He shoots off quick replies and by the time he looks back up, their professor is striding down the corridor towards them.

* * *

By the time Kei escapes, he is in desperate need of coffee. It's not _his_ fault that going over the basics of infections and disease preventions are mind-numbingly boring. It's not their professor's either, but he certainly doesn't help. He sits close enough to the door that by the time everyone's realised the class has ended, he's already halfway down the corridor. He slips behind a group of fourth years for cover, just in case Inouka tries to wrangle him into another study session, and then he's back out on the street.

With two hours before he has to be in another classroom, he heads back to the coffee shop he'd had to miss earlier. It's not a long walk, but the promise of Akaashi's coffee has him hurrying anyway and by the time he gets there he's almost out of breath.

It strikes him, not for the first time, as he pushes the front door open and the little bell above the door tinkles, just how strong the magic in this place is. How it reaches out to greet him like an old friend whenever he steps through that threshold, that things seem a little brighter, a little more surreal. There's an orchid hanging just inside the door and he pretends he doesn't see it physically perk up as he enters. Pretends he doesn't duck his head when he sees leaves reach out for him.

Akaashi's already behind the counter, apron tied neatly around his waist as he waits for the coffee machine to stop hissing. He looks up at the sound of the bell and smiles. It's a small thing, almost unnoticeable, and whilst Kei wouldn't consider himself anything close to an expert on Akaashi Keiji, he's a lot more competent than he once was.

"Hello, Tsukishima. Your usual?" Akaashi asks, although it's needless because he's moving for the right ingredients even before he's finished speaking. Kei leaves his money by the till, and then turns to survey the room. As if he's going to sit anywhere else, even when the place is completely empty.

He slumps into his usual seat by the window and drags his bag onto the table. He neatly piles his textbooks beside his right elbow and then gets out his laptop, gazing out the window as he waits for it to boot up. He watches an old lady walking her dog across the street, levitating the ball just out of its reach and laughing when it barks at her. Two teenagers pass her, more interested in seeing who can light a cigarette with their fingers first than to where they're walking and they jump when a car horn honks at them. There's such an easy acceptance of magic here, and it never fails to take Kei's breath away no matter how often he sees it.

"Here." Akaashi's voice is soft as he places a steaming mug of coffee beside Kei, smiling again when Kei startles slightly.

"Thanks." Kei says, ducking his head and rubbing the back of his neck. He doesn't look up again until he knows Akaashi is back behind the counter, and even then he refuses to look in that direction.

There's soft music playing from somewhere, although Kei's never been able to figure out where the speakers are. The longer he listens to, the more relaxed he feels, and after a moment or two of staring at the wall like an _idiot_ , he switches his attention back down to his laptop and flicks through the topmost textbook to the relevant chapter. The small potted plant on the table seems to hum at him, slightly out of tune as it follows the beats of the music and Kei does his best to ignore it. Instead, he focusses on his homework; finding an easy rhythm as he writes up his notes on therapeutic agents.

He manages to get most of it done over the next hour or so, and is just about to begin packing up his things when the bell above the door tinkles again. Two men, who can't be much older than he is, saunter through the door and over to the counter. Well. One of them does. The other stays by the orchid that had tried to greet Kei earlier, the ring on his middle finger knocking against the ceramic pot as he pats it.

"Akaashi!" The one nearest the counter exclaims, having apparently not even noticed Kei's in the room. He takes the baseball cap he's wearing off so he can run a hand through his hair, and either he has the worst case of hat hair in human history or it actually defies the laws of gravity. Kei isn't close enough to tell.

There's a beat of silence, as Akaashi stops doing whatever it was he'd been up to in the back room, and then his head appears around the doorframe. His frown lessens slightly when he sees who it is and his voice is the gentlest Kei's ever heard it when he speaks. "Bokuto. Kuroo."

"Ya never answered my text." The one Kei assumes to be Bokuto accuses.

Akaashi's frown returns as he pats his pockets. "You didn-. Ah, sorry." He shrugs, almost helplessly.

"Doesn't matter." Bokuto brushes the apology off with a wave of his hand. "You're gonna come, right?"

"Didn't you learn your lesson last time?" Akaashi asks, hands on his hips. Kei thinks he can hear a laugh somewhere in there, although he's never actually heard Akaashi be anything other than calmly polite. "That ghost stuck around for a week, if I remember correctly."

Bokuto rubs at the back of his neck and smiles. It's _the_ most sheepish expression Kei has ever seen on another human being. "We're better at it now, though!"

Akaashi stares the pair of them down for a few moments before sighing. "Fine. I'll come. But if anything goes wrong, then we're never doing this again."

"Fair enough." The one that must be Kuroo says. It's the first time he's spoken, and his voice isn't what Kei had expected. He's not exactly sure _what_ he had expected, but this isn't it.

"Alright! Ghost hunting!" Bokuto actually punches the air, like an excited child.

It hits Kei, then, what they've been talking about and he feels his stomach drop. Necromancy. They're talking about _necromancy_. He shoves the rest of his stuff into his bag, his laptop closing with an audible _snap_. He thinks he does an okay job of hiding his panic, even if he does avoid Akaashi's eyes as he slips his headphones over his ears and practically dives out into the alley.

He pauses when he reaches the main street, chest heaving. _Necromancers?_ _Fucking really?_


	2. for all the ghosts that are never gonna

**sorry for vanishing for four months, folks, shit happened and this entire thing just Did Not Want to be written.**

* * *

Necromancy, all things considered, isn't all it's cracked up to be. Sure, sometimes you get to do the exciting stuff, like talking to the dead, or sitting in musty old basements waiting for the souls of the damned to visit. But most of the time it's a hell of a lot more boring than that. Stumbling through a graveyard at the ass crack of dawn, looking for one particular headstone, level boring. At least Koutarou didn't choose a public cemetery, this time. Trying to explain to grieving members of the public that seances are neither illegal, or dangerous is a mistake Tetsurou has sworn to make only once.

A glance at his phone tells him they've only been here for ten minutes, at most, and that includes the circus that was getting out of Koutarou's rust bucket of a car, but he already wants to go home. Not that that's a _surprise_ , necessarily, given that he'd wanted to go back to bed moments after he'd clipped himself _into_ Koutarou's rust bucket of a car. But Akaashi had levelled him with one of his _looks_ , and any argument he might have had had shrivelled to dust on his tongue.

So now here he is, freezing his ass off as he watches Koutarou prance about ahead of him, his hair virtually glowing in the moonlight as he flits between the headstones. Tetsurou watches him, hands shoved as far as he can physically get them in his jacket pockets in a futile attempt of fighting off the chill. The dead have no need, and therefore no care, for warm clothing though, and he feels the hair on his arms rise as a breeze winds its way between his legs and kicks up dust and leaves off the floor.

Akaashi appears beside him, and if Tetsurou didn't know any better he would strongly suspect magic. But he _does_ know better, that it's just one of Akaashi's many talents, and that it scares the shit out of him, like always. He makes a startled sound, sees the pleased smile Akaashi tries to hind behind the scarf he's tucked his chin into, and Tetsurou shakes his head. The light of his phone makes the circles under Akaashi's eyes even more prominent, and Tetsurou tries to ignore the stab of guilt.

"You think he'd notice if we just… left?" He asks, rolling his head to look at Akaashi properly.

"Eventually." Akaashi says mildly. He bites back a yawn, muffled slightly by the scarf, but his eyes remain amused. "He'd only pester us about it even more."

"Point." Tetsurou concedes with a shrug. He curls his fingers in the lining of his jacket. "Okay. The sooner we get this started, the sooner we can go home."

Akaashi hums, pats him on the shoulder, and then wanders off. There's a fork in the path ahead of them, so he branches left as he fishes his phone from his pocket and uses the dim light to read the names. Tetsurou makes a show of bending to look at a few of the graves, although in the dark the names are nothing more than grey blurs.

"Oi!" He calls, ignoring the way his knees crack as he stands back up, and grinning at the way Koutarou's head swivels to look at him. "Remember who we're looking for, yeah?"

"I _know_." Koutarou's voice is nearing on a whine as he stomps off again, pointedly shrugging further into his jacket when Tetsurou laughs at him.

The quiet that settles around them would have been eerie as a kid. As it is, Tetsurou's spent his fair share of time amongst ghosts, and their attempts at unsettling him don't work. By the way Koutarou keeps glancing over his shoulder, the same cannot be said for him, however. Tetsurou is about to tease him about it, has his mouth open and everything, when Akaashi calls them over. It comes as no real shock that Akaashi is the one to find what they're looking for, more because he's actually _looking_ for it, rather than the fact he spends more time hanging out in graveyards than any self-respecting person probably should, present predicament notwithstanding.

"This is the one, right?" He asks when Tetsurou is close enough to barely make out the engraving.

He runs his fingers over the stone, and nods. "This is him."

"Huh." Koutarou says, having finally made his way over to them. He hooks his chin over Tetsurou's shoulder, hair scratching against Tetsurou's cheek as he shifts his weight. "I don't think I ever met him."

Tetsurou gives Akaashi a flat look, winking when his lips twitch ever so slightly upwards. "Your family is big enough to populate a small country." He jostles his shoulders until he's a little more comfortable. "Not exactly surprising, is it?"

Doing the best he can with the angle he's got, Koutarou elbows him in the back. There's enough force that it sends them both stumbling forwards, Koutarou's arms instantly latching around Tetsurou's waist in an effort to keep them both standing. They share a beat of silence before they both start cackling at each other.

Akaashi ducks the lower half of his face inside his scarf again, but Tetsurou sees the grin before he can fully hide it. "Maybe we should go inside?"

"An excellent idea." Tetsurou says, shrugging Koutarou off and jerking his head towards the urn nestled underneath the engraved name. "The honour's all yours."

"Thanks." Koutarou says dryly, hands suddenly very gentle as he delicately picks the urn up and tucks it against his chest. "Now, c'mon! Ghost hunting!"

"That's not-" Tetsurou begins, knowing it's pointless to argue but unable to help himself from trying. Koutarou shows know sign of acknowledging him, humming under his breath as he wanders off, and Tetsurou sighs. Akaashi passes him, offering him a sympathetic pat on the shoulder as he goes.

"Come on." He says, glancing over his shoulder. "It'll be over soon."

The Bokuto residence is a large, sprawling plot of land deep in the heart of Tokyo, seemingly at odds with the modern city that surrounds it. Not that that bothers Tetsurou; this place has been home to him for almost as long as he can remember, and there's an easy familiarity in the way he walks back to the house. The gardens are invariably warmer the closer they get to the main building, the smell of the well-kept flowerbeds helping him relax.

They find the back door already open when they reach it, which would worry Tetsurou a lot more if he weren't aware of the number of wards surrounding the entire building. Being this far away from the bedrooms means they don't have to worry about being quiet, but they still tread carefully anyway, deftly avoiding any creaky floorboards. Koutarou leads the charge, his movements so light that it almost looks like he's dancing down the hall. The door he stops in front of is closed, and Tetsurou sees his fingers pause just above the doorknob for the briefest of moments, before his shoulders slump and he steps inside.

Tetsurou shuts the back door behind him, sliding the deadbolt into place and kicks his shoes off. He takes a moment to straighten them neatly against the wall, tutting at the way Koutarou's have been left wherever they landed when he took them off. He glances up to find Akaashi watching him from down the hall, and shrugs.

The doorjamb, when he reaches it, is covered in runes; 'protection' and 'containment' are carved the deepest. The look Koutarou is giving him is sheepish, and Tetsurou grins.

"Let's hope they're friendly this time, yeah?" He asks, just to watch Koutarou squirm a little. The table Koutarou is sitting at somewhat ruins the effect, but Tetsurou will take what he can get at this point.

"How was I meant to know?" Koutarou says, crossing his arms across his chest. "I didn't _ask_ them to try and possess me."

"They did a little more than 'try', Bokuto." Akaashi points out, voice wry. He fiddles with the cuff of his sleeve so he doesn't have to meet Koutarou's eye.

"Musta known about all that empty space between your ears." Tetsurou teases, poking Koutarou in the temple as he moves across the room and settles himself on the floor. He grumbles when Koutarou swats at him in retaliation, reaching out to gently place a hand on the urn in the centre of the table. The ring on his middle finger clinks against the ceramic, and he sees Koutarou pull a face.

"This time'll be different." Koutarou says confidently, nodding at Tetsurou's hand.

"If you say so." Tetsurou mutters, shifting his weight and then settling back down. "Now shush, I need to concentrate."

Koutarou pretends to scowl at him, fingers tapping against the table for a moment, before he mimes locking his mouth shut and throwing away the key. Akaashi, now divested of his scarf, instead hides his smile behind his hand and winks so quickly at Tetsurou, he's half sure he imagined it.

There is no ceremony to what Tetsurou does. Sometimes, when other people are watching him, he wishes there were something… _more_ to this. But as it is, all he actually has to do is leave one hand on the urn, the other falling to rest in his lap. He takes several deep breaths, and then closes his eyes.

Tetsurou is in darkness. Fully and totally emerged in it with no obvious way out. It wouldn't be so bad if it were the nice kind that accompany pleasant dreams, but it's not. It's oppressive in its complete blackness, anchoring him here in a way that begins to feel more permanent the longer he's here. He's had it drilled into his head for as long as he can remember that this is a place to be respected and feared in equal measure, and to refer to it by its name at all times. Personally, Tetsurou thinks this place _sucks_ , and actively avoids coming here as much as he can. Which usually means he can get away with calling it The Void instead of The Astral Plane. Usually. It's always a gamble, coming here.

He's never met Bokuto Kaito, which isn't a huge problem by any means, but it _will_ make finding him a little more difficult. Trekking through a plane of existence that by all accounts isn't even technically _real_ , can be tough even when you do know where you're going. He's only been here for two minutes, if that, and he can already feel exhaustion creeping up on him, ready to trap him the moment he lets his guard down.

"Here goes." He mutters, slowing his breathing until he's barely inhaling at all. He doesn't really need to breathe at all here, but the last time he'd tried not to, he'd sent himself into a panic attack. It's better if he keeps up pretences. He feels his fingers brush against the urn in the living world, and waits for what seems like an eternity for the responding tug in this one. It's a tiny part of conscious that feels it, that knows exactly where he needs to go, and that's great. It just doesn't help him actually _get_ there.

So, he starts walking. At least, he thinks he does. It's hard to tell the difference between what's real and what's not here, and it always leaves his head spinning. He prefers not to think about it. Much like everything else here, time passes strangely. What feels like seconds can be an hour, and vice versa. Tetsurou has long since given up on pointing out how nonsensical this place is. Mostly because you can only shout into an empty void for so long before it starts eating at you.

That isn't to say he stays quiet, though. The one habit he's never quite been able to break, despite the reprimands and the constant scolding, is talking to himself. Those who come here, at least, the people like _him_ , have an anchor – something to remind them of what is real, and what isn't. It's not Tetsurou's fault if his just so happens to be his own voice.

"Uh… Bokuto-san? You here?" Tetsurou calls out into the darkness. His voice is hollow, almost reedy, and it sends a chill up his spine. _Move faster._ "My name is Kuroo Tetsurou, I'm a friend of the family. I know you don't know me, but I was wondering if I could maybe talk to you?"

Tetsurou frowns at himself. _Smooth_. He's never really been good at this part; never quite managed to get over the whole 'talking to the _dead_ ' thing. "You're buried at the main house, which means you're important to Matsuko. She's basically my grandma, if that helps convince you." He breaks off with a nervous cough. " _Anyway_ , I promised Koutarou a séance, so you would really be helping me out."

"Talking to yourself again?" A voice murmurs into his ear, and Tetsurou absolutely _does not_ scream. He doesn't.

"Jesus _Christ_." He squeezes his eyes shut, and clutches at his chest as he waits for the pounding in his ears to slow down. He doesn't have a heart here, but that doesn't actually seem to matter, given the adrenaline hammering through his veins.

"Not the name I usually go by." The voice says again, and although Tetsurou can't see it, he can hear a smile.

"Kenma." He huffs, cracking an eye open so he can squint at the man in question.

Kozume Kenma stands to his right, hands hooked into the back pockets of his jeans as he rocks on his heels. Recently bleached hair, and Tetsurou knows that's true because he can _smell_ it, swings into his face. He reaches up to tuck what he can behind his ear.

"Yo." He says, glancing over at Tetsurou. His eyebrows are nearing his hairline and he's still smiling.

" _'Yo'_?" Tetsurou repeats incredulously. "What the _fuck_ are you doing here?"

"Nightly walk." Kenma says, taking a few slow steps forward to demonstrate. He tilts his head curiously. "You?"

"Why do you think?" Tetsurou says, rubbing at his chest as he follows Kenma through the darkness. "Koutarou wanted to go 'ghost hunting'."

Kenma makes a small noise, pushing at his hair again when it flops back down into his eyes. He's _solid_ here in a way Tetsurou has never been; almost as if he belongs in this place, instead of just being a visitor. Tetsurou glances down at his own hands, at the way they seem to flicker between realities, and then back up at Kenma.

"You don't want to?" Kenma guesses, spinning on his heel so he can still gage Tetsurou's reaction even as they continue to walk.

"Oh you know me." Tetsurou says with a tired smile. "Can't get enough."

Kenma is quiet for a little while. He murmurs to himself a couple of times, but Tetsurou knows that asking is pointless, so he doesn't bother. He'll get his answers eventually. The silence that settles around them is almost uncomfortable in how absolute it is, so Tetsurou focuses on putting one flickering foot in front of the other.

"I have an idea." Kenma says eventually, when the quiet is beginning to scratch at Tetsurou's senses.

Tetsurou sees the glint in his eye, the promise of trouble hidden behind the careful indifference, and grins. "We fuck with Koutarou?"

The nod Kenma gives him is the best answer he could ever hope to get.

"Good evening, gentleman." Tetsurou says, carefully biting down the smile threatening to ruin this whole thing before it even gets a chance to take off.

He watches Akaashi carefully, takes in the way his eyes lift from the book he has open in his lap and shoot straight to his face. He tries to keep his face as neutral as he can, _tries_ to be convincing in his neutrality. It's not Koutarou he has to worry about ruining things, his excitement will hold the illusion all on its own without Tetsurou's help. But Akaashi's role in this whole idea had been long suffering, at best.

"I hope I haven't kept you waiting long. Your friend had some trouble finding me."

"Not long at all!" Koutarou says, leaning forwards across the corner of the table so he's inches away from Tetsurou, and it takes all of Tetsurou's control not to involuntarily flinch back.

His focus is mostly here, in the living realm, but he is still vaguely aware of Kenma's presence. Being torn between two planes of existence is… strange. Not unpleasant, exactly. But it's weird enough to make him feel mildly queasy.

"Relax." Kenma says, voice barely more than a whisper, even though there's no danger of them hearing him. He slides his hand over Tetsurou's shoulder, squeezes gently, before reaching up to rest his fingers against the pulse point in Tetsurou's neck. "Relax."

It's weird how effective that one word is, how it settles into his bones and makes him feel more at ease. He knows the charade won't last very long, that either he'll give himself away, or they'll catch him out, but it doesn't seem to matter much.

"And you?" Tetsurou asks, switching his attention back to Akaashi. "Did I leave _you_ waiting too long?"

"No," Akaashi says slowly, eyes flitting between Koutarou's excited grin and Tetsurou's face. "I'm fine."

"I'm glad." He knows he's eventually going to have to speak in actual sentences, but the longer he can put it off, the better. "So, what is it you wish to know?"

"How did you die?" Koutarou asks immediately, looking vaguely like the passion behind it surprised even him.

Tetsurou frowns deliberately. "We've only just met, and _that's_ what you want to know?"

Koutarou looks appropriately chastised, and falls silent for a few seconds. "I'm sorry, that was rude. I'm Koutarou, what's your name?"

"You picked my urn up," Tetsurou says, tinkling his ring against the urn in question when he wiggles his fingers, "and you don't even know my name?"

"I was just trying to be friendly." Koutarou grumbles, and Tetsurou has to duck his chin to try and fight the smile. "Um, what did you do for a living, when you were… alive." He finishes weakly, wincing at his own choice of words.

"I _was_ a businessman, down in Osaka." Tetsurou says, knowing the lie is likely going to be caught by Akaashi at the very least. He sees the moment Akaashi realises what's going on, and turns his head in the hope Koutarou won't see him wink. To his relief, Akaashi nods, a small, minute thing that would have been unperceivable had he not been staring at him so intently.

Koutarou nods, before he freezes. The beginning of a frown creases his brow. "We don't have family in Osaka."

"Ah," Tetsurou says. He hears Kenma snigger in his ear, and tries to swat at him, but with his concentration so fragmented, he isn't sure it works. "I was kicked outta the family."

"Then why are you buried in the family plot?" Koutarou asks. "And why do you have a Tokyo accent, _Kaito-san_?"

"In my defence," Tetsurou says, dropping the act, and grinning at Koutarou, "I _was_ trying to find him."

"But?" There's no trace of anger or annoyance in Koutarou's voice, and Tetsurou isn't entirely sure why that surprises him as much as it does. "You get bored on the way?"

"I met Kenma." Tetsurou uses the hand Kenma already has on his neck to pull him into the room. Or rather, he pulls a shadowy imitation of Kenma into the room, almost as if they're seeing him through a murky window.

"Hi." Kenma says, the sound echoing in Tetsurou's ears from both versions of his friend. He disappears mere seconds later, the force of it snapping Tetsurou fully back into his own body, and for once the experience doesn't leave him with a headache, at the very least.

"That explains some things." Akaashi closes the book and places it on the table.

There's something about the way he says it that makes Tetsurou tilt his head. "You knew straight away, didn't you?"

"You did a good job of pretending." Akaashi says, scratching idly at his chin. "But your voice was different."

"You are… eerily perceptive, you know that?"

Akaashi merely smiles in response and pushes himself onto his knees in an effort to stand up.

"If we're finished, I'm hungry." Koutarou announces, stretching his arms above his head and sighing in satisfaction when numerous bones crack.

"You sure you don't want me to actually find him?" Tetsurou asks, watching Koutarou's flailing limbs warily. "I can, if you want me to."

"Nah, it's okay. I kinda want food, anyway." He gets to his feet, pulling at his jeans until they fall back into place.

"And I should start heading home." Akaashi interjects, stamping his feet on the ground a few times in an effort to get his blood flowing again.

"I'll drop you off, I know you've got the early shift." Koutarou says as he turns to Tetsurou and offers him a hand. His arm goes taut as he takes the weight, and when they're standing side by side, he slings that arm over Tetsurou's shoulders. "Food?"

"Sure."


End file.
